The plain brown package on your doorstep held no return address. Inside, nestled in unbleached cotton, was a chessboard of impossible design. Its rosewood and maple squares extended seamlessly, vanishing beneath the cloth without any discernible edge. A single note was tucked beside it, the script sharp and angular: "For the warden who dares to grant parole."

Your heart hammered against your ribs. You knew this object, though you had never seen it. You read the esoteric texts on the Alphatale Wiki. This was the Infinite Chessboard—not a game, but reality itself mapped onto a grid, each piece a soul bound by its rules.